CIEL UK Annual High Mass and Conference

The Annual High Mass and One-day Conference of CIEL UK will be on Saturday 29 May at the London Oratory. There will be solemn High Mass at 11am. (The photo above is from last year's Mass, taken by Brother Edward of the London Oratory.) In a departure from previous annual Masses, the Mass setting will be Gregorian chant rather than polyphony. It is also hoped to include a motet composed by James MacMillan. The choir will be directed by Patrick Patrick Russill, the highly distinguished Director of Music at the London Oratory.

The Conference will then take place at 2.30pm in St Wilfrid’s Hall at the Oratory, chaired by Lord Gill. (Entry £5.) The speakers are Dr James MacMillan CBE, and the Very Rev Richard Duffield.

I wrote recently about an excellent address given by James MacMillan to the Thomas More Institute. His lecture at the CIEL Conference is sure to be of great interest as he is speaking about Liturgical Music pre- and post-Vatican II.

Fr Duffield, Provost of the Birmingham Oratory and Actor (postulator) of the Cause of John Henry Cardinal Newman, will give a short address on the status of Cardinal Newman’s cause. That is, of course, a topical subject given the forthcoming beatification of Newman.

The afternoon will conclude with Solemn Benediction in the Little Oratory, followed by a reception. Nicole Hall’s “Granny” books will be offered for sale by Peter Hall at this time.

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